Show mom your appreciation with an elegant cupcake topped with edible pearls and glitter. Recipe first appeared in the Big Book of Cupcakes presented by Southern Living.

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup shortening

2 cups sugar

4 large eggs

2-3/4 cups all-purpose soft-wheat flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup buttermilk

1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1-1/2 teaspoons almond extract

Paper baking cups

Vegetable cooking spray

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/4 cup whipping cream

1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 16-ounce package powdered sugar

Directions

To make cake, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Beat butter and shortening at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy; gradually add sugar, beating well. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until blended after each addition.

Combine flour, baking powder, and salt; add to butter mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat at low speed until blended after each addition. Stir in extracts.

Frost the top of each cupcake smooth by placing a heaping spoonful of frosting in center of cupcake. With an offset spatula, push frosting to edges while turning cupcake. Rotate cupcake, and lift the frosting with the spatula to create peaks.

Write "Mom" on top of each cupcake with a decorating bag or Ziploc bag with the corner snipped off.